


The Sliding Tiger

by Xenafox



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Paranormal, Road Trip
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-03
Updated: 2018-08-18
Packaged: 2019-06-04 17:54:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,273
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15152519
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xenafox/pseuds/Xenafox
Summary: Otabek always kind of felt like something was off. He takes a roadtrip across Russia, making a shocking discovery along the way...Eventual Otayuri!





	1. Chapter 1

When he was young, Otabek attended a training camp in Russia. Most of it was a blur he tried to block out. He couldn't keep up with the Russian skaters, try as he might. His body, though young, was always so stiff. He worked hard to be expressive, to convey all that he felt, but he wasn't flexible enough, not skilled enough - when he moved on he tried his best to leave his thoughts behind. 

Except for one thing, one person.

Otabek never forgot those piercing soldier eyes. They held determination and stubbornness while trying to hide great care. Of course - aside from his gaze, Otabek didn't know anything about what was in Yuri's mind. But inexplicably, he was drawn to him.

The day before Otabek changed to a different class he tripped and fell forward, almost landing on his face. He was caught by another pair of arms and as he clambered up off the floor awkwardly, his face brushed by Yuri's hair as the other helped him. The scent of lavender shampoo struck him. 

"You okay?" asked Yuri, who sounded fully annoyed. 

"Uh-huh," was the only reply Otabek could manage and once he was on his feet, Yuri turned and walked away. Otabek watched him go, unable to shake the smell of his hair. 

\-----

"This isn't a good time for you to go off on a trip." Viktor crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at Otabek, who stood in his doorway with his black leather jacket on and hands shoved in his jean pockets. He ignored the little calico cat rubbing against his legs, looking up at him with her poofy tail in the air. 

Otabek shrugged. "Sorry. It's a good oppurtunity for me."

"Not for your skating future." Viktor sighed and uncrossed his arms as he walked toward Otabek with the small cat following. Viktor was clad in black sweatpants and a light blue sweater. He'd been relaxing at home when Otabek came to call. "Practice is vital, and I am still having a hard time getting you to loosen up. You may have taken home silver in the Grand Prix last year, but it doesn't mean you can blow pratice off!" 

It was true, and he felt guilty as hell, but DJing at a big party in Vladivostok? It could be career changing in that area of his life. It could put him on the fucking map in the club scene and second to skating that was his goal. "Sorry," he said again. "I'm not blowing it off, either. I'll put in a lot of time when I come back and step it up. I can stop at rinks along the way-"

"Along the way? You're not flying!?" Viktor asked, eyes going wide before he threw his hands up. "Otabek! You don't have time for a damn road trip! Vladivostok is clear across Russia!"

"I'll put in extra work," Otabek pressed, and he frowned. He meant to stand firm, be assertive, and do his thing even if Viktor was usually very good at getting him to agree with him. But he was having some trouble with the guilt. He wanted to do something, maybe pet Viktor's cat as he did when he felt off, but it was too awkward.

Viktor was shaking his head by then. "Otabek, when I agreed to coach you, I didn't take such a job lightly. I wanted someone to shine as a star student, the new ace skater. That would be Yuuri, but I'm married to him and the public doesn't like to see us as-nevermind. You're going to do this no matter what I say, aren't you?"

Slowly, Otabek nodded. He wouldn't back down no matter what. "Yes. I've secured a car for hauling my equipment and I've planned my route. I'm looking forward to it Viktor."

Viktor stood still, then sighed again and turned. "Go. Just go. When you return, we'll see what shape you're in and if I can do anything with it. There's no use in discussing it now." The cat was looking at Otabek even if Viktor wasn't, her little green eyes wide.

There would be no more talk. Otabek nodded even though Viktor wouldn't see. "Right. See you, Viktor."

When the door was closed and he was walking away, Otabek felt like he could breathe. Taking the amount of time off that he was, it was honestly an awful idea. He knew he shouldn't, but he had to and it wasn't just because of the gig. 

There was something that felt off, and had for years if he was being honest. Recent training and medals in ice skating distracted him, but he could ignore the feeling no longer. Otabek had so long wondered if he should be where he was. If Viktor was to train his champion who wasn't his husband, wouldn't he want it to be a fellow Russian? 

When he trained in Moscow, the Russians were so far ahead of him that it didn't make any sense to him. Someone who should have been there simply wasn't and Otabek was filling the wrong skates. He'd told his best friend some of his thoughts before and JJ had been understanding when he said he thought it was anxiety related. JJ had seemingly made himself an expert on that since he had an experience a few years prior. 

Otabek knew he was wrong. It wasn't anxiety. Otabek knew he was now extremely good and there was no question that his name would be held in high regard among future skaters. But it felt like he had taken something from someone else that wasn't even there.

Try explaining that, though...

The next morning he was off shortly after sunrise. "Yo, it'll be quite the trek, but I'm leaving when I wanted. I'll make a few stops, but I will be there in plenty of time. I was able to borrow a small car. Ah...call you later." After leaving the message for his friend across country he shoved his phone in his pocket and got back in the dark green hatchback car. It was a little old, a few scratches decorating its sides - but it was roomy, smelled good, and would have to make do since he couldn't exactly use his motorcycle for the trip. 

The car was gassed up, he had his drinks and snacks, and off he went.

It was going to be one long, lonely drive. Following his plan, his first day alone had him on the road for a good nine hours. He would wind up close to Kachalka, and be able to spend the following day enjoying the local places and going to Lake Galichskoye. It was supposed to be beautiful, and he couldn't wait to enjoy the view, even if alone.

Alone. He'd never dated. He wasn't interested and had figured he probably didn't have a soulmate anyway - even if he didn't believe in that kind of stuff. The only time he'd ever felt a draw to another person was when he was years younger. That boy hadn't shown up in the skating world as he had hoped and well, that was that. 

Though, he'd be lying if he said he'd never felt that there was an empty space beside him as he skated across the ice.

"Ah...this will be a long drive," he sighed as he exited St. Petersburgh behind a blue car. And so it was.

Hours of driving on A-114 certainly had their effect on him. It was a dull drive with a lot of woods, and he was pretty bored at first. Once in a while he might see something interesting or flip off an asshole driver. That was about it, though. 

A good five hours into the trip his phone went off. Otabek answered it using his bluetooth headset, though he had really wanted to ignore it. "Yes?"

"So, you really went out of town?" came Yuuri's soft voice, and Otabek immediately felt guily again. Yuuri would have to deal with Viktor feeling stressed. Not that Viktor was mean or anything but regardless...

"Yup. I'm sorry. This is important to me."

"Then I'm glad you're doing it." 

Otabek blinked, slowing his driving just a bit. "You are?"

"Yes!" Yuuri's voice was enthusiastic and it made Otabek smile. "Viktor will get over it. You need to make yourself happy. Not that you seemed miserable, but just not entirely satisfied."

Otabek sighed. His blank face had failed him somewhat. "Well...I haven't been," he said as he watched a little blue car behind him approaching quickly. "Don't get me wrong. I'm so grateful that Viktor took me on and that you help me too! But something is still missing.

"Any idea what?"

The little blue car passed him. "I don't know. Just something. Sometimes it makes me feel I shouldn't be there - I don't understand why Viktor chose me instead of a fellow Russian."

Yuuri laughed gently. "Viktor saw your potential, as do I. Come on, it's not that odd. I'm Japanese you know. You're closer to being Russian than I am!"

That was true, and Otabek just snorted lightly in acknowledgement. "Yea, yea okay. Still, that camp I was at years ago, there were many Russian boys there who surpassed me. That blonde one, I thought for sure Yakov had his eye on him."

"That blonde one...? Did you know his name?"

"No..." Otabek wished he knew. Hell, he wished he knew! "He had very piercing eyes...kind of like a soldier's. He was incrediby flexible, effortless in his movements..."

"Sounds like you liked him a lot."

Otabek rolled his eyes. Yes, he'd wanted to know him, but it wasn't to be. "As you've noticed, I didn't even know his name. He just stood out. I can't believe he didn't stand out to Yakov."

"I'll ask Yakov about him, because I'm curious too," replied Yuuri, followed by a small yawn. "Well, I just wanted to call and check in. Do keep us updated on your trip, it atually sounds quite nice."

"I'm sure it will be when I see something other than trees and other cars. I'm stopping a short distance from Kachalka in a few hours." Otabek checked the time. Yea, it was still a ways off. He couldn't wait to stretch his legs already. Another car passed him, looking much the same as the blue one before.

"Right, long drive. Can you let us know when you have arrived at your first stop?" he asked.

How sweet. "Sure. Will do. Thanks for the call, Yuuri." He appreciated it, honestly. He had expected only to hear from Viktor. 

"Drive safe. Bye, Otabek." Yuuri said before hanging up, and Otabek was met with the silence in the car. 

It felt enough to drive him mad, both the repetitive view of the trees that looked the same over and over and fucking over...His thoughts were no better and as he arrived at the little hotel he'd called a couple of hours prior; he had started to feel like he was followed. That was his cue that he was getting overtired on the road, even if it wasn't late at night. It wasn't late at all, really.

Still, despite plans to go out and eat, have a drink, and relax scrolling his phone, Otabek had barely plugged the thing in when he laid down to rest before finding food and resulted in passing out for the night.

He woke with a pounding headache. And he woke up late, too. 

So much for spending time in Kachalka. Otabek checked his phone, seeing a few missed calls from Viktor and Yuuri, even one from JJ. "Shit," he grumbled and rubbed his eyes. He had forgotten to text anyone that he was safe. He moaned and rolled from his side to his back, vision blurry as he started to type. 

'Got here just fine. Was so tired I passed right out. Sorry.' He sent it to Yuuri, who would tell Viktor. Later on he'd catch up with JJ. He doubted JJ was even really concerned, he probably just called to yell about the song ideas he'd picked out for a routine. JJ wasn't that great with contact...

Otabek packed up his stuff, got into his car, and got going. He pulled out, narrowly missing a blue car that suddenly drove behind him in the small lot. Otabek wanted to flip the driver off but he was too tired to care properly. 

Coffee was a priority and he did find a small gas station to get a to-go cup from.

From there it was a couple of hours to Kachalka, and he felt groggy but he refused to stop for breakfast right away. Stomach eating him inside out? It didn't matter, he wanted to keep going. He wanted to get somewhere. He hada strange feeling of stagnancy as he drove, and he wasn't sure if it was in regards to his whole life and his figure skating - or if he had been in the car too long. 

It was probably a bit of both, and he decided to blast some screeching rock music to wake up and drown his thoughts out.

A good breakfast in a little cafe that was quiet and devoid of most people helped a lot. Otabek didn't enjoy noisy places outside of his interests. Clubs were loud as shit, but when he was DJing he got lost in reading the crowd and feeding them music. It took him from reality, even more than skating did lately. At least when he was DJing, he didn't feel the nagging feeling of being strangely misplaced.

After his food, it was back to the road for yet another couple of hours - but as soon as he parked for the lake he felt better - a lot better. The lake was beautiful, and he could see across to the village it was named for. The lake was vibrant while still being rather unpopulated - it was a sunny day and he could make out only about three other people fishing off the marshy banks. Beyond them it was trees, and the water reflected the sun.

Perfect. If he didn't enjoy technology and what modern living had to offer, he would be tempted to make like a bear and live somewhere like that. But he was there to sight-see, to find some calm in him and then continue on his journey with some less muddled thoughts. 

Except...

He had started on a scenic pathway when he felt a very strange nagging feeling. It was hard to get a grip on. Something was pulling at his mind, and for a moment he felt he was in another place - not another part of the world, but like in a dream. A strange shift in the air, and while he didn't like it, it was intriguing and part of him settled like a piece fell into place. 

Maybe he really did need to get away from modern living.

No, that wasn't it. He walked without much direction, off the pathway. He couldn't stop his own damn feet if he wanted to, and they carried him toward a patch of bushes. A feeling akin to anxiety rose in his chest but he still couldn't stop. It was almost too much, threatening to burst out, the warm air around him almost crackling.

Then he was at the edge of the bushes and things shifted back to normal around him, though the sight before him was unanticipated to say the least. He had to blink and shake his head to figure out if he was really seeing it. 

Before him, laying there, was a young man laying naked, eyes closed but breathing softly. He had blonde hair down to his shoulders it looked like. His skin was fairly pale, his frame thing though he wasn't a spindly thing. His arms and his legs - especially his long legs showed the efforts of someone who worked out. 

He was...familiar. He was very very familiar. 

"The fuck!? Are you okay?" Otabek asked when the initial shock wore off. Of course it was stupid to ask a sleeping person, and he groaned. "Ugh, shit, I don't know what to do..." The people fishing were too far off to hear him yell, and there wasn't anyone around and...

Otabek suddenly knew what he needed to do. He took off his leather jacket, something he wore even if it was a little hot, and he knelt down. The sleeping man made a little sound and turned his head away which made Otabek freeze for a moment, but only a moment. He carefully threw the jacket over the man's stomach and crotch to give him some dignity, and then carefully reached under his back and legs.

It was awkward since the man was a deadweight but...he was also lighter than hell. While he looked pretty healthy, he didn't seem to weigh much. Otabek also liked to think he was pretty strong, so he chalked it up to that. Still, he stumbled slightly as he raised him up, eventually cradling the man against his chest as he started a staggering walk back to his car.

Why did he seem so familiar? Why did things seem sort of right? Otabek didn't know, but he had to make sure he was okay. "Who the fuck are you, and why were you out there?" he mumbled to his sleeping companion.

The man turned and buried his head in Otabek's chest. When he did, Otabek got a good whiff of his hair. 

It smelled like lavender.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mysterious man wakes up!

"Call the local emergency number. He's probably a missing person who needs medical help."

"Maybe." Yuuri's words made sense and Otabek knew in any other situation, that was exactly what he should do. It didn't mean he wanted to.

"No maybe about it, Otabek. You found a passed out man in a bunch of bushes with no idea how long he's been there. Medical attention is important at least!" Yuuri's soft voice carried alarm in it and it unnerved Otabek. He didn't hear that an awful lot since Yuuri and Viktor had moved in with each other. 

"What made you think he's a missing person, anyway? He could have wandered off from some friends here and gotten lost. Maybe then proceeded to trip and hit his head." And lose all his clothes...

"Something about it seems really weird," came Yuuri's swift reply. "I-I'm not sure what aside from him being naked, exactly, but the way you describe everything, it doesn't sound like a place someone just wanders from their group."

Otabek shrugged despite the fact Yuuri could not see anything he did. He rubbed his forehead, the phone clutched tightly in his other hand. He was leaning against the car, having managed to awkwardly lay the man down in the back. He couldn't be happier he was driving a hatchback, though he still had to move some equipment around. "Perhaps you're right. I don't really know. Yuuri, not to ignore your advice, but I'm going to attempt to give him some time to wake up before I call anyone."

"Otabek..." Caution came through in his voice then. "You don't know what kind of person he might be."

That irritated Otabek. It irritated him more than it rationally should and he was well aware of it. He didn't know who the man was, but he was sure, he was fully sure that he wasn't a bad person. "Yup. I know."

"I'm not trying to be a jerk about this. If you'd called Viktor he'd probably even be worse."

"I realize that." Otabek let out a sigh. "I understand, Yuuri. I'll be careful, alright?" he assured him. "I don't want to be too hasty, perhaps he was hidden away for good reason too."

"That could be. I trust your judgement Otabek...listen, just let me know how it goes after he wakes up, okay?" Yuuri sounded tired then.

"Of course. I'll text or call," Otabek told him. "Alright, I'm going to deal with rearranging the car. Thanks, Yuuri." With that, their call was over and Otabek was again alone with an unconsious man. 

How would he wake him up? He didn't have smelling salts. He also had no desire to dump water all over him and the car, and he wasn't going to wake him up with alarm due to loud noises. Perhaps he could shake him? But what if he awoke suddenly and violently?   
There wasn't much to do except wait it out, and Otabek did happen to be pretty patient. He continued to lean on his car, eventually turning it on to play some soft music and break up the silence since there continued to be no one immediately around him. 

He hadn't thought it would be enough to wake up his passenger, but about ten minutes into the music he managed to hear a small moan in between songs. Immediately he shoved his phone in his pocket and whipped around from the side of the car to look in the back, the trunk door raised since he put him in there. The man was laying there still with Otabek's jacket over his hips but his eyes were open - only about halfway, but they were open, and he turned his head. 

"Hey," Otabek said, standing at the edge of the trunk and not knowing what the hell else he should do. The man didn't really react, still slowly waking up. Otabek cleared his throat and tried again. "HEY."

Suddenly the blonde's head snapped up and his eyes were wide, looking at Otabek. "The fuck are you!?" he asked and his hands, which had been limp at his side, suddenly dug into the floor of the car and his legs kicked to try and move back. "The fuck - where am I!?"

"Safe safe!" Otabek cried urgently. He didn't know what else to say and was close to grunting random words like a big ape. "You're safe!"

"Safe!?"

"SAFE! Yes! I found you laying in the brush and brought you here to be somewhere safe!" Otabek replied as the other was trying to scoot himself up against one of Otabek's cases of equipment. 

"You...found me?" The sense of urgency dropped but a tiny bit to give way to curiousity. "I don't believe you!"

Otabek didn't know how to respond; clearly the man hadn't meant to be found, or hadn't expected to wind up in a situation where he would be. "It's true! I went for a walk and I found you laying there. I didn't know what to do except bring you back here. Look, what's your name?"

The blonde's captivating eyes narrowed. "Why should I tell you? Why am I naked?" That last question had an accusing tone to it. 

"I have no idea why you're naked, alright? I put my jacket on you because of that. I'm Otabek Altin." Maybe if he introduced himself it would move things along. He hoped anyway.

"This is your jacket?"

"Uh-huh. Sorry if it's not very soft."

The other man continued to stare at him. Otabek was painfully aware that he was being judged, that a decision was being made. He could only hope the decision would be for Otabek to help him. If the stranger rejected his help and left, it felt like it would tear him apart and he didn't even know his name. 

He knew his smell and he knew his eyes. He knew he'd be dumb to ignore that.

Then suddenly, the hard stare dropped. The man sighed. "No, it's fine. I'm Yuri," he said, and it suddenly felt like they knew each other.

But they didn't. "Cool." Otabek had to scramble on what to say next. "Uh! I have clothes if you want to wear them. They're a little big but-"

"Well yea, they're better than being fucking naked!" Yuri snapped and the tiny bit of softness that Otabek thought he felt an inkling of was gone. 

"Right, right," Otabek muttered and pulled his suitcase from where he'd moved it on the backseat. When he had it arranged, he opened it to search for clothes. He didn't want to choose something that would make Yuri think he was trying to say something about him. "Uh so you don't know how you got here?"

"No!"

"Where are you from?" he asked as he selected a pair of jeans and a black belt with silver studded stars to help the smaller man keep them on. 

For a moment there was silence. Then Yuri answered. "Uh, St. Petersburg, sort of. But I got moved around and now I'm in Spain."

"Spain? You're...pretty far from home."

"I...wait, where the hell am I?"

"Lake Galichskoye..." Otabek was growing more concerned by Yuri's confusion. He found a short sleeve shirt featuring a lime green guitar with wings and picked up that. The last thing was to choose underwear and unfortunately the ones that would fit Yuri best had a bear eating honey on the ass. He stepped back with the pile of clothes. "...In Russia."

Suddenly Yuri's head popped up over the seat, his eyes wide and gaze on Otabek. "No fucking way! I'm back in Russia? After all these years?"

Otabek blinked and then handed over the clothes, Yuri reaching eagerly past the seat for them. "I-I guess. How long were you in Spain?"  
"Ummmm...I guess I moved there around eleven or twelve. I don't...I don't really remember."

Moving around could be blurry in memory and Otabek nodded. "I see." Meanwhile, his heart had started to beat against his chest. At the training camp, the boy with the eyes and the lavender smell had been ten or so. The boy he never saw again - well that sounded like the age he may have moved away. 

"And fuck I hated it! Fuck!" Yuri sort of vanished as he shrank back behind the seat to put on clothes. Otabek was focusing on the area outside the car, thinking as Yuri kept on. "Grandpa must have done something....shit! I don't know what the hell happened but....ah..." He trailed off and Otabek could hear him shifting around.

"Is this somewhere he would have brought you?" Otabek asked, knowing he had to piece things together.

"Maybe." Otabek heard more shuffling. "But...whenever we went to lakes, they were frozen. He would take me ice skating."

His heart almost stopped. "Skating?"

"Yea, what, there something weird about that? I was damn good at it! I think I could dance too, but...well again, things get kind of blurry. I used to wonder if I hit my head."

"Nothing weird! I-I like skating," Otabek said, turning around quickly. He wasn't going to get into the fact that he was kind of world famous. "I just didn't expect it I guess."

Yuri was crawling out of the back of the car by then, his clothes baggy on Yuri's thin frame. Otabek wasn't really big, just more muscular. "Uh-huh." He was kind of cute as he stared down at himself and then looked back up at Otabek. He looked like he wanted to say something but was hesitant for a moment. "...So what now?" 

"I don't know." They silently regarded each other, Otabek and the strange person he'd found. "I have no idea where you came from. You want to call your Grandpa?"

Yuri nodded, suddenly paused, and frowned. "Fuck."

"What?" 

"I don't know his number. His name is Nikolai but..." Yuri furrowed his brow in thought. "I don't- I can't remember his last name. It's not the same as mine."

"What is your last name?"

Yuri looked right back at him, his eyes wide and lost looking, but still not lacking the drive he knew was there. "Plisetsky."

He knew he had to know that name. Had to! But if Otabek couldn't place it, perhaps Viktor could. Skating, Russian from St. Petersburg, there was at least a small shot. "Okay. I'm going to text one of my friends in St. Petersburg and see if he might be able to dig something up." 

"Pfft." Yuri rolled his eyes. "You know how many people live in that city? He's not going to know who I am just because I once lived in the same city, that's stupid."

Otabek chose not to mention who exactly Viktor was as he took out his phone. He wasn't sure it was really the time to mention Viktor's incredible fame, if only because he would have to then get to his own. "Better chance than me, I'm originally from Kazakhstan," he answered as he typed to Viktor: 'The name Plisetsky sound familiar?'

"Huh." Yuri shrugged. "Anyway, now what?"

"I don't know. What do you want to do?"

"Why were you here anyway?"

"Oh." Otabek sighed. "I'm on a trip across country, with at least a week left ahead of me." It pained him to say the next thing, but he had to. "I'm really only at the start of this trip, but if you need to go to St. Petersburg, I'll take you."

"Wow, what a hero you are. That's dumb, just get me to an airport and I'll fly back."

"With what money?" Otabek asked, an eyebrow raised. Not that he inspected Yuri's naked body, but he sure didn't see anywhere to keep a wallet.

Yuri's face transformed into the very portrait of confusion. "Oh. Uhhhh..." 

"Look...Antropovo is about an hour away. We can go there and check into a hotel while you figure stuff out. How about that?" Otabek asked, hoping like hell Yuri would say yes. Aside from not knowing what else to do, he wanted to keep Yuri close as he tried to understand what the hell was happening to himself.

Yuri kept giving him that confused look, until he sighed and nodded. "Yea, okay. I guess so. If I can talk to Grandpa he can get me home and you can continue your trip."

Otabek nodded. He would still volunteer to take Yuri back, though. Missing the gig would be difficult, but if he had to do it to understand why he'd felt weird for such a long time, then he would cope with it. "Alright. Let me load some of this back into the car properly, and we'll get going."

"Okay." Yuri stepped over to the back and reached in, withdrawing the jacket Otabek had laid over him, holding it out. "Here...thank you, by the way."

Otabek didn't know what to really say so he just nodded as he took it and put it back on even if he wasn't cold. Then he joined Yuri at the back of the car to start rearranging things back the way they should be. His stomach growled. "Are you feeling up to eating? I'm pretty hungry."

"Not much of an appetite, but maybe I should try to eat anyway," Yuri told him. His hands were out to help, but he was mostly watching Otabek. "What is all this stuff, anyway?"

"Oh. Equipment for the gig I'm on my way to...I'm a DJ," he told him, a light blush in his cheeks. It felt weird to bring it up to Yuri for some reason. 

"You're a DJ!?" Yuri asked, and loudly. It was nearly a yell. "That is so cool!" That WAS a yell.

"Oh ah-" Otabek didn't know how to react, but he laughed a little awkwardly. "Yea, it kind of is."

"There's no 'kind of', that shit's awesome!" Yuri was grinning as Otabek looked up to him. "You better play some good music on the drive!"

Otabek smiled despite himself. He was relieved that Yuri had come around since initially waking up. Hopefully, he could keep his mood up. "I will. I won't let you down, Yuri." And he meant that.


	3. 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now where the heck is Yuri from? Why is he so chipper about all of this? Otabek learns more about his strange companion.

When it came to music, Otabek knew he had it down. Once he and Yuri were in the car and ready to drive he already had songs and even mixes in mind, but he could only do so much while driving. The car had a good CD changer in it however and he knew which CD might make the mysterious blonde feel just plain awesome, and within seconds Yuri had flown for the volume control to crank it up. 

"Hell yea!" he was yelling out the window as they got back on the road nearing early evening. "Forget doing this down the streets of Zarvad!"

Otabek just laughed and drove. He knew getting some food in Yuri was important as well as stopping and figuring shit out, but he still didn't stop at the first cafe he saw. He kept going - Yuri was all smiles, all fun, sticking his hand out the window of the car and letting his fingers ride in the air as it whooshed on by. For someone who had come from Spain and mysteriously woken naked in Russia, he was handling it all oddly well. 

It wasn't like Otabek was going to complain about that though and so he told his mind not to dwell on it. 

When they did stop, it was at a large place outside of the destination town. Otabek had no idea what Yuri might like so he chose a restaurant that looked like general foodfare. "Here work?" he asked, parking the car. 

"Mm! Actual Russian food - PIROSHKI!" he shouted suddenly and it made Otabek startle. "Oh fuck, Piroshki! It's been so many years!" 

Otabek blinked. He had piroshki often and it didn't sem that special. "Um...?"

"We have to check the menu first. If there's no piroshki we go somewhere else," Yuri said, shooting a fierce look at Otabek. 

Another person may have withered, but Otabek found it amusing and he agreed. "Fine, fine. Let's-"

"I'll check and come get you!" Yuri threw off his seatbelt and opened the door so fast he nearly banged it against the side of the blue car next to them. He bolted out and Otabek was staring after him. 

It may have been a smart idea to go after him, but instead Otabek checked his phone. He needed to know if Viktor had any ideas and luckily there was a message waiting for him:

'Plisetsky? Sounds familiar. I don't know from where, though. Why?'

'I think I knew someone with that name in Yakov's training camp. I ran across someone else who went and the name came up.' That was technically truthful. 'Would you ask Yakov if he knew a Yuri Plisetsky?'

He had time to ask that and then there was knocking on his window. He turned to see Yuri was all smiles, which likely meant piroshki. Otabek nodded and unbuckled his belt. He then proceeded to lean across the passenger seat and pull Yuri's door closed, as it had just been left wide open. 

When he opened his own door again to get out and give Yuri some shit, Yuri was already darting off again to the entrance of the place. Otabek could only hurry after him into the restaurant and eventually to a little booth table by the window.

They both ordered off the cluttered menu quickly. He had claimed not to be hungry, but Yuri sure could put away piroshki. He was on the food like a caged tiger on a fresh kill. Otabek tried not to stare but caught himself doing it anyway. It was a good thing that Yuri was too busy chowing down to notice.

Otabek let him keep going, eating slowly himself as he also scrolled on his phone. He was looking up Yuri's town to try and find information. If there was a missing person report he would need to know before they went any further. Yuri told him it was a town called Zarvad.

The problem was, he couldn't find a town called Zarvad anywhere in Spain. It was possible there was an error with the map he was using, but various internet searches were giving him nothing. His best guess was Yuri was muddled and couldn't quite get the name right. It occurred to Otabek that perhaps Yuri had a concussion. 

When Yuri slowed down in his eating, Otabek addressed it. "Yuri, do you have a headache at all? Any of your body feel weird? I want to know if you might have a concussion."

Yuri shot him a confused look. "I feel okay. I don't think I hit my head, if that's what you're asking."

"Mmm, it pretty much is. You don't know how you got here and well...Yuri, I'm not finding this town you mentioned, Zarvad. I've been looking on my phone and I just can't find any trace of it. I thought maybe if you had injured your head, you gave the wrong name."

"No, it's Zarvad." Yuri sounded irritated. "Look, it's not my problem you're that bad with the internet."

Otabek ignored the snide comment. "There's also...you don't seem that disturbed for someone who lives in Spain but suddenly happened to wake up in Russia." He didn't want to think that Yuri was insane. That almost sounded like what he was suggesting though so he braced for a tongue-lashing.

It didn't happen. "That's a fair statement." Yuri sipped at a glass of orange juice in thought. He then swirled his straw in it slowly before speaking. "I can't tell you how many times I hoped I would just...escape back here from Spain. I don't like it. The people who moved me there made it even more miserable. I wanted to be back here with my Grandpa. I fucking dreamed of waking up anywhere other than Zarvad."

The people who moved him... "Did you not live with your parents?"

"Foster system, adoption," Yuri hissed. "Couple of fools who took in myself and a couple of others because of how it might benefit them. Couldn't go to my Grandpa when they took me, and they took me and got the fuck out of town. Didn't have the means to get out even as an adult."

Otabek's heart fell. Somehow he hadn't expected that. He hadn't expected the young soldier to be put in such a position. "I see."

Yuri scowled. "Hey, don't. I don't want your pity, you're a stranger really. Do I look like I need pity? No, I need my real family and the cat I used to have."

"I'd say you need a fucking friend and here I am," Otabek shot back, pretending he wasn't impressed by Yuri's sharp tongue. The guy could easily stand up for himself. 

"I-...shut up." Yuri suddenly was so quiet after being so direct, and he averted his gaze.

Otabek blinked, noticing a slight blush on his cheeks when his phone went off and he opened the message. He read it once, then again, and had to keep his reaction silent when it was near impossible. Viktor had replied: 'Yes, Yakov remembers this Yuri Plisetsky! He was extremely talented and I think maybe I did meet him. But one day he stopped showing up at the rink. Why are you asking this?'

He could answer in so many ways, but Otabek chose the most direct, and the easiest way to make sure poor Yuuri wasn't stuck with information he had to keep secret. 'I think I met him...talk to Yuuri for details so I can get back to driving soon'. Not that they were done yet, but his head had immediately began to swim and he wanted to speak more to Yuri. 

Yuri...who was talking to him. Otabek quickly realized he was being spoken to by his new friend. "Otabek? Otabek? You look spaced out, bad news message?" he asked, nodding toward his phone. 

"Oh, no. Just trying to figure more out. Turns out, my friend had heard of you. Remember anyone named Yakov from your time in St. Petersburg?"

Yuri continued to look at him. "Ah, I don't know. Should I?"

"Maybe. Seems you took some classes with him as a boy." That was fudging it a bit but bringing it all up and again mentioning Viktor - he just didn't want to throw too much too soon at him. 

"And how did you learn that?"

"I texted that friend of mine and he decided to ask someone who might know."

"Oh." Yuri shrugged and returned to his orange juice. "Guess it makes sense to ask teachers, they would know students, but they have so many. I wonder why this Yakov remembers me? Huh, does seem familiar though. Too bad I got taken away so young."

Otabek couldn't place a finger on the mood. It had gone from okay to a little heavy and stressful to...to something. It was like Yuri wanted Otabek to ask him about himself but was too nervous or proud to say that. Luckily for him, Otabek had been curious for longer than anyone knew. "Why were you taken away?"

"Awful bold question when you've just met me."

"What, like you wouldn't ask me if I was saying that shit?"

Yuri huffed and glared, but he did answer. "Mom couldn't take care of me on her own. Dad was...mean. He got more violent for some reason right before some stuff happened, I don't know, it's hard to remember. Maybe that's for the best. So they took me."

"Foggy memory?"

"Yup."

"Trauma, maybe post-traumatic stress..."

"Maybe. Nothing anyone was going to do about it. I just ended up in Spain. So I hope...I hope I can go back to St. Petersburg. All I need to do is get there. That's all." He was desperate, he was pleading, and Otabek knew he wouldn't say no to just bringing him back. 

"I'll help you." Otabek worked on the coffee he had ordered, not knowing if he even needed it. When they did get to the hotel, how was he going to sleep?

"All things considered, I shouldn't believe you when you say that...but at the same time, nothing says that. I don't know enough about you or what the hell happened to trust or not trust you," Yuri babbled. He was looking vulnerable again even without the blushing.

Otabek understood, though. "I don't just say things for the sake of doing so, you'll see. We'll figure this out and get you to where you want to be." He said it firmly.

Yuri looked at the table, at the leftover food he clearly had no will to finish. He poked at the plate and nodded slowly. "Thank you."

 

The sun was setting when they finally rolled up to a hotel after another very loud and musical ride. Yuri had his head out the window for half of it, and the second half he was rubbing his eyes while complaining about bugs that had hit his face. Otabek had just laughed.

The hotel wasn't much to look at, in a building attached to another building attached to a bank. But it was reasonably priced without giving the idea of being a shithole, so Otabek had taken them to it. An expensive hotel might have been fun, but if he was going to backtrack to take Yuri home and feed them both and then even attempt to get to the big gig - five stars was out of his range. 

Yuri didn't say a peep about it. Otabek figured he was just glad to be somewhere stable for the night - somewhere he could rest and put his thoughts together. So they checked in with a weird desk clerk who stared at Yuri like he was seeing a ghost.

"Do you know me?" Yuri had asked in a surprisingly soft voice. Otabek knew he wanted answers. 

The man had swallowed and his hands shook as he handed Otabek a piece of paper to sign. Otabek signed it and the man all but shooed them away to their room before running off to some back room. 

Odd.

Otabek left some of his equipment in the car, covered by a large sheet. It was probably just fine but he didn't trust the unfamiliar place when he couldn't see the car from the window. The room was on the second floor and had a view of...a building next door. 

However the room itself was nice - a comfy red carpet, two queen beds, thick curtains, a minifridge and microwave, big television, all that. Yuri quickly bounced onto the bed furthest from the door and turned on the TV. Otabek didn't stop him. He didn't care what he chose to watch, and Yuri didn't even ask. 

Somehow, they ended up on a nature program about bears. 

Otabek hadn't been paying attention to what was on before, but he perked up when he saw a cute black bear galloping across a road like an awkward big puppy. His ears were round just like a teddy bear, eyes bright and inquisitive as he looked in the direction of the camera. Otabek smiled and chuckled softly. 

It earned an immediate look from Yuri. "You really like bears, huh?"

"Yup."

"I saw the bear on your underwear. You know, the pair I'm wearing." Yuri shook his head in disbelief. "Shit. I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to buy you a drink before I get in your pants. Too bad I have no money," he lamented and then laughed. 

"Ha. I-haha-uh yea," Otabek faltered, then groaning at himself for not being smooth at all. Yuri even had a raised eyebrow. Otabek looked away in his embarrassment. "Just buy me a drink next time." He had never been great with play-flirting. Additionally, he never flirted with anyone seriously, so he wasn't all that practiced on quick response. 

"Next time I...get in your pants...?"

"I meant after! Fuck." 

"You are terrible at kidding around." Yuri laid down completely on his back. "But...before I forget, what the hell am I sleeping in tonight? I don't want to stay in these same clothes."

"I don't know. I sleep in boxers and sometimes a short sleeve shirt. You can borrow a shirt if you want." At least Yuri had immediately ruled out the possibility he slept in the nude. That could have been awkward, even more awkward than the brief exchange they just had.

Otabek was silently bitching at himself for being so stupid, but even Yuri being silly made his heart race inexplicably as he began to feel something click into place again. 

Yuri hummed. "I could, but the hotel has a little shop down there with some drinks and snacks. Think there's robes?" 

"You want to sleep in a robe?"

Yuri nodded. "I want to be comfortable. It's not like my foster parents made me sleep on a rock. But the bed was old and sucked and this bed is nice. I want to complete it with a nice soft robe," he told Otabek. 

Otabek nodded back. It seemed a little extra to him, but whatever. "Call down to the front desk, then."

Yuri groaned and rolled over toward the room phone. "Alright," he said, and as he did Otabek's phone vibrated. 

He picked it up to look at the newest message, and it was in all capital letters: 'YOU PICKED UP SOME RANDOM NAKED GUY BY THE LAKE? WHAT KIND OF TRIP IS THIS?'

Oh Victor. Otabek could imagine the tantrum he'd worked himself into. He texted him back. 'Uh-huh. Yuri Plisetsky. He's fine, hasn't tried to murder me.'

He had switched to his Instagram for a moment while waiting for a message back, Yuri speaking loudly and slowly on the phone. He didn't have to waste time on the app long before Victor messaged back. 'Otabek, I doubt that's Yuri. There's no record of him anywhere after Yakov's class. It's strange.'

That did seem strange, but if he'd left an abusive parent and went into the foster system, then maybe he would be hard to track down. 'He went to Zarvad, Spain, ever heard of it?' Maybe Victor would find the town, or something. The information could help him find something on Yuri that had been locked up too. 

Then he put the phone down, just as Yuri hung up the phone. "The store got robes?"

"Even better." Yuri was grinning. "They can be requested as a room service goodie, and I got one for you too."

"For me?"

"Yep. Listen, what you said earlier, when you said I needed a friend...it was dorky as shit. But you're right. I should have shaken your stupid hand at that table."

Otabek felt heat rush to his face. There was no hiding it. "Yup. This has what to do with robes?"

"Well friends do some cheesy shit together, yea? I had some pals in Zarvad but I had to force myself around them. Being back in Russia is like...a fresh start. So come on. Get in a stupid robe along with me and let's hang out here until you figure out the fuck is going on. Deal?"

Otabek blinked. Sometimes he had to force himself too, even though for the most part he stayed as himself around everyone. It could be difficult. He had the bad boy persona, and for the most part he was proud of it. He owned it in various ways. But at the same time, some fans and buddies expected it to be amped up every day all day and he had other sides of himself he didn't always feel comfortable in showing. 

Yuri was offering him more than he knew. So Otabek nodded as a small smile formed on his face. "Deal."


End file.
